Scarlet Ibis Character Analysis Essay

¨At six years old, when his brother is born, the narrator tells the reader that from the first, Doodle was "a disappointment." When he learns that Doodle is possibly mentally and physically challenged, the narrator begins his plan to kill his brother; however, his plans are soon discarded after Doodle smiles at him¨. (James Hurst) The main conflict of "The Scarlet Ibis" by James Hurst is Brother's inability to deal with Doodle's disabilities.

At the beginning, Doodle had been very hesitant to go along with his brother’s plans. He tried to argue with his brother. “I can’t walk, Brother,” Doodle said. “Who says so?” He demanded. “Mama, the doctor, everybody,” uttered Doodle. “Oh, you can walk,” The narrator said.” Shortly after that, Doodle began to follow the narrator’s orders and self ambitions. Soon, the narrator had acquired too much ambition, putting Doodle at risk. This is evident with Doodle’s constant cry, “don’t hurt me, Brother.” Little did the narrator know he would be pushing his brother too far. Later in the story, the narrator let his ambition overcome him and decided to keep on pushing his brother. He did not want a brother who could not do what other normal schoolboys could do. He admits to himself, “the knowledge that Doodle’s and my plans had come to naught was bitter, and that streak of cruelty within me awakened.” He believed what Doodle could not do would greatly affect him and his social

Doodle was born prematurely, so early that he was severely disabled, which his brother never failed to remind him every chance he got. He was made a casket shortly after he was born, as he wasn’t expected to live for a long period of time. The narrator highly disliked is brother, so much that he made him touch his casket, leading to him to realize how he could use Doodle. ‘Doodle was paralyzed, so I put him on my shoulder and carried him down the ladder, and even when we were

When Doodle was alive, he had many rules that had to be followed to ensure his safety and although Brother new of the precautions, he didn't follow them, which made him guilty. Brother would only follow them if he was around the house and possibly being looked after by a family member. "As long list of dont's went with him, all of which I ignored once we got out of the

This is first shown when he says the words “want” in an emphasized manner. The italics indicate that he is accusing his brother of not trying hard enough because of lack of desire, when from the start, Doodle struggles heavily trying to keep up with his brother’s pressures. In fact, by all means he should not have the capabilities to walk at all, according to his doctor and parents when he is first introduced in the story. He continues to passive-aggressively insist more from Doodle when he says that if he does not “keep trying” he’ll “never learn”, pointing towards the thought that if Doodle doesn’t learn how to walk now, he will never able to for the rest of his life. Furthermore, the narrator’s depiction of a depressing future, with the negative connotations of “old”, “white-haired”, and “still pulling”, adds to the characterization of the narrator using clever words to brainwash Doodle.

This text proves that the narrator has no problem with the idea of killing his brother, and the only reason why he doesn’t is that Doodle shows that he is “all there”. Further in the story, the narrator displays the wish of Doodle being a normal boy. Despite the disability of a weak body, the

Weakness and strength are only one thing in a person. This only tells us about their physical appearance or how much force you can apply with muscle. In the same kind of case for Doodle in The Scarlet Ibis, by James Hurst, he was on the weaker side of things with a disability and a heart condition. Character traits for him would be weak, slow at learning, and very dependent on others.

When the boys started to get Doodle normalized Brother would give him lessons on the things that he liked to do. Evenduring some dog days they were working. "' On hot days I gave him swimming lessons or showed him how to row a boat '"(599). Doodle's heart is starting to go faster so could keep on doing the work that he is not supposed to do. On those hot days Doodle knew he should be resting, but he trusted Brother to get him to be better than he was already. Some of those days Doodle must've thought about quitting, but he didn't want to upset his big brother.

The dysfunctionality in Doodle and his brother’s relationship began when Doodle was born with a disability. Despite Doodle being a miracle baby, his brother feels embarrassed of his brother’s disability. Doodle’s Brother always tries to cause Doodle pain and traumatized him by making him touch his coffin and other such terrible things. He made Doodle go above and beyond his limits by forcing Doodle to “run, to swim, to climb trees, and to fight.” inspite of Doodle’s disability (4 Hurst). He only does this for his own selfishness and wish to not have a disabled brother. Doodle was considered to be a burden, even after he learned to walk for the happiness of his elder brother. Doodle always trusted and believed his brother. On the other hand, Doodle’s Brother always felt Doodle was nothing more than a burden. When he tries to run away from his responsibilities, he ends up killing Doodle. Doodle’s loyalty and faith in his brother was not reciprocal by his brother . Doodle trusted his brother blindly but his brother’s hateful emotions towards him cause their relationship to be destroyed. The narrator showed false loyalty and pride for Doodle and allowed his selfishness to destroy their

In "The Scarlet Ibis" by James Hurst, Doodle's family underestimates Doodle and his abilities too early in his life due to his disability. For example, everyone, with the exception of Aunt Nicey, believes that Doodle is going to die when he is less than three months old. They are inconsiderate of the fact that Doodle actually is alive at the moment. Also, they do not have faith in his survival even though he does not die at birth or show signs of death, like sickness, later on. In addition, Doodle's mother says that as long as Doodle lived, he would remain in bed. Doodle's family loves him, but they have no motivation to help teach him activities that a person without disabilities has. Everyone accepts that Doodle is physically handicapped

“It was bad enough having an invalid brother, but having one who possibly was not all there was unbearable,”(1). Says the narrator as he contrives to kill Doodle in “Scarlet Ibis,” by James Hurst. William Armstrong, known as Doodle, brother of the narrator. His family first thought he would pass away soon after birth. Later, Doodle surprised everyone by learning to walk. The narrator’s pride helps and hurts his brother.

He was born with physical defects that would not allow him to be normal. His body was mis-shaped and systemically he can not exert himself. As the doctor visits the family they learn "he mustn't get too excited, too hot, too cold, or too tired, and that he must always be treated gently" (417). Doodle was not expected to live and they built him a coffin but he did not die. He had many medical conditions and had to be treated gently because he seems all head and tiny body which is shriveled like an old man. Doodles physical condition limit his ability to walk or stand up so he collapses onto the ground. The narrator says,"He collapses onto the grass like a half-empty flour sack" (418). His brother is determined to teach him to walk because he is ashamed of having a crippled brother. After many times of falling Doodle was able to show his family that he could walk. He has many limitations that will not allow him to achieve all of his goals however his sickness makes his conditions

“Shut up. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm going to teach you how to walk" (Hurst 3). Doodle tried to tell brother to be careful, because Doodle did not want to get hurt. Brother wants to help Doodle as much as he can, he does not stop to try and find a way for the disabilities to not be so bad for Doodle.

The use of the literary devices repetition, paradox and situational irony show how Doodle is a complex, yet believable character. These literary devices show how Doodle is dependent on Brother and the progression he’s made with Brother helping him with his disability. As the story begins, the author gives a brief backstory about Doodle’s heart disease. In “The Scarlet Ibis”, Hurst uses the repetition, “‘Brother, Brother, don’t leave me! Don’t leave me!”(Hurst 475) to show the dependency Doodle has on Brother and the anxiety he experiences from being alone.

In the beginning of the story, the narrator has a negative attitude towards his brother. On page 385, it states, “It was bad enough having an invalid brother, but having one who possibly was not all there was unbearable.” Later, his attitude changes. ALso on page 385, it says, “‘ Mama, he smiled. He’s all there! He’s all there!’” The thought of Doodle Being slow was upsetting for the narrator, but realizing Doodle wasn't made his joyous. This shows how